Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB329 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	sb0329
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 329
8	8	P6 5lr1864
9	9
10	10	By: Senator Jackson
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 15, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Budget and Taxation
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System – Benefits 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of clarifying that a member of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension 3
21	21	System is not required to make member contributions after accruing a certain 4
22	22	amount of service credit; altering the method for calculating the retirement 5
23	23	allowance for certain retirees of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System for 6
24	24	service earned on or after a certain date; altering the maximum service retirement 7
25	25	allowance that certain retirees of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System 8
26	26	may receive; clarifying the eligibility requirement of certain Law Enforcement 9
27	27	Officers’ Pension System members in the Deferred Retirement Option Program; and 10
28	28	generally relating to the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System. 11
29	29
30	30	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 12
31	31	Article – State Personnel and Pensions 13
32	32	Section 26–204(a), 26–401(b), and 26–401.1(a), (c), and (d) 14
33	33	Annotated Code of Maryland 15
34	34	(2024 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 16
35	35
36	36	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 17
37	37	Article – State Personnel and Pensions 18
38	38	Section 26–401.1(b) 19
39	39	Annotated Code of Maryland 20
40	40	(2024 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 21
41	41
42	42	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 22
43	43	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 23
44	44
45	45	Article – State Personnel and Pensions 24
46	46
47	47	26–204. 25
48	48	2 SENATE BILL 329
49	49
50	50
51	51	(a) (1) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a member’s 1
52	52	contribution rate is: 2
53	53
54	54	(i) 4% of the member’s earnable compensation received before July 3
55	55	1, 2011; 4
56	56
57	57	(ii) 6% of the member’s earnable compensation received from July 1, 5
58	58	2011, to June 30, 2012, both inclusive; and 6
59	59
60	60	(iii) 7% of the member’s earnable compensation received on or after 7
61	61	July 1, 2012. 8
62	62
63	63	(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection, [after 32 years and 9
64	64	6 months of service as a member,] a member does not make any further contributions 10
65	65	AFTER ACCRUING THE A MOUNT OF SERVICE CRE DIT THAT WOULD PROVIDE T HE 11
66	66	MAXIMUM NORMAL SERVI CE RETIREMENT ALLOWA NCE ALLOWED UNDER § 12
67	67	26–401(B) OF THIS TITLE. 13
68	68
69	69	26–401. 14
70	70
71	71	(b) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of this subsection, on 15
72	72	retirement under this section, a member is entitled to receive a normal service retirement 16
73	73	allowance that equals: 17
74	74
75	75	(I) the number of years of the member’s creditable service ON OR 18
76	76	BEFORE JUNE 30, 2025, multiplied by 2% of the member’s average final compensation; 19
77	77	AND 20
78	78
79	79	(II) THE NUMBER OF YEARS OF THE MEMBER ’S CREDITABLE 21
80	80	SERVICE ON OR AFTER JULY 1, 2025, MULTIPLIED BY 2.5% OF THE MEMBER ’S 22
81	81	AVERAGE FINAL COMPEN SATION. 23
82	82
83	83	(2) A member’s normal service retirement allowance under paragraph (1) 24
84	84	of this subsection may not exceed [65%] 70% of the member’s average final compensation. 25
85	85
86	86	(3) (i) This paragraph applies only to a member who is not subject to 26
87	87	the Law Enforcement Officers’ Modified Pension Benefit under Subtitle 2, Part II of this 27
88	88	title. 28
89	89
90	90	(ii) Except as provided in paragraph (4) of this subsection, on 29
91	91	retirement under this paragraph, the member is entitled to receive a normal service 30
92	92	retirement allowance that equals: 31
93	93
94	94	1. 2.3% of the member’s average final compensation 32
95	95	multiplied by each year of the member’s first 30 years of creditable service; and 33
96	96	SENATE BILL 329 3
97	97
98	98
99	99	2. 1% of the member’s average final compensation multiplied 1
100	100	by each year of creditable service in excess of 30 years. 2
101	101
102	102	(4) Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, on retirement under this 3
103	103	section, if a member’s annuity is greater than the member’s normal service retirement 4
104	104	allowance calculated under paragraph (1) or (3) of this subsection, the member’s normal 5
105	105	service retirement allowance shall equal the member’s annuity. 6
106	106
107	107	26–401.1. 7
108	108
109	109	(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. 8
110	110
111	111	(2) “DROP” means the Deferred Retirement Option Program established 9
112	112	under this section. 10
113	113
114	114	(3) “DROP member” means a member of the Law Enforcement Officers’ 11
115	115	Pension System who: 12
116	116
117	117	(i) is eligible to participate in the DROP as provided in subsection 13
118	118	(c) of this section; and 14
119	119
120	120	(ii) elects to participate in the DROP as provided in subsection (e) of 15
121	121	this section. 16
122	122
123	123	(4) “EMPLOYMENT ” MEANS EMPLOYMENT IN A POSITION ELIGIBLE 17
124	124	FOR MEMBERSHIP IN TH E LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS’ PENSION SYSTEM. 18
125	125
126	126	(b) There is a DROP for eligible members of the Law Enforcement Officers’ 19
127	127	Pension System. 20
128	128
129	129	(c) (1) In this subsection, [“creditable service”] “EMPLOYMENT ” does not 21
130	130	include credit for unused sick leave as provided in § 20–206 of this article. 22
131	131
132	132	(2) A member of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System is eligible 23
133	133	to participate in the DROP if the member has at least 25 and less than 32 years of 24
134	134	[creditable service] EMPLOYMENT . 25
135	135
136	136	(d) (1) In this subsection, [“creditable service”] “EMPLOYMENT ” does not 26
137	137	include credit for unused sick leave as provided in § 20–206 of this article. 27
138	138
139	139	(2) An eligible member may elect to participate in the DROP for a period 28
140	140	not to exceed the lesser of: 29
141	141
142	142	(i) 7 years; 30
143	143	4 SENATE BILL 329
144	144
145	145
146	146	(ii) the difference between 32 years and the member’s [creditable 1
147	147	service] EMPLOYMENT as of the date of the member’s election to participate in the DROP 2
148	148	and retire from the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System; or 3
149	149
150	150	(iii) a term selected by the member. 4
151	151
152	152	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 5
153	153	1, 2025. 6
154	154